Producer unknown to us
Prayer chain
Asia, Iraq, Baghdad
Before 1962
Wood; lathed, painted
Lothar Stein (former museum director) acquired this prayer chain during a research trip to Iraq between 1960 and 1962
Purchased by the Museum from Stein in 1962
WAs 2009
Arab men in Iraq wore such rosaries, called “misbaha” or “subḥa,” for prayer until the mid-20th century. They are made of lathed and painted black wooden pearls.
Lothar Stein (*1935) studied Arabic in Iraq from 1960 to 1962, during which time he conducted field research with local communities. In his publications, he commented on processes such as the advance of “Western” clothing styles into the cities and the gradual decline of nomadic lifestyles in rural areas. From his time there, he brought back 280 objects he had acquired for the Leipzig museum with funds from the State Secretariat of Higher and Technical Education, or items received as gifts from colleagues.
Frank Usbeck